Munich - It may only have been a pre-season mini-tournament, but FC Bayern Munich's showing at the Telekom Cup in Mönchengladbach gave the opposition an early warning, should one be needed, that resting on their laurels is the last thing the treble-holders have in mind for the campaign ahead.

Nine goals for and just one against in hour-long encounters with Hamburger SV (4-0) and, in the final, hosts Borussia Mönchengladbach (5-1), demonstrated that after less than a month of preparations, Bayern are already looking ominously sharp under new head coach Pep Guardiola.

Kroos and Lahm paired up

Inevitably, far more than the results themselves, the interest of pundits and fans alike at this stage is centred on the system and tactics being tried out by the former FC Barcelona master strategist. Guardiola's one must-have acquisition, Thiago Alcantara, impressed in both matches as the lone holding midfielder, bagging his first goal for Bayern in the final for good measure. Every bit as tantalising, meanwhile, was the deployment of Philipp Lahm against Gladbach and Toni Kroos in both games in the central attacking midfield roles.

Kroos, who missed the end of last season, UEFA Champions League and DFB Cup finals included, due to injury, faces even more competition for a midfield berth with Thiago also on board in Munich now. Far from being fazed by the prospect, however, the 23-year-old Germany international is, as he told the press after Saturday's win against Hamburg, looking forward to "hopefully another long season with a lot of games, where everyone'll be needed."

Variations on a theme

Asked about the changes being implemented by the Guardiola, he said that for the Telekom Cup, at any rate, the team were playing to "a slightly different system. Basically, one of the holding midfielders pushes further forward, so we're a bit more attack-orientated. The important thing, and what we're aiming for, is to always be adaptable and in a position to control the midfield."

On that front, director of sport Matthias Sammer noted on the club website that it was "very pleasing" the way the team have thus far responded to "the new coach's clear-cut concept," while praising as well Guardiola's "very sensitive" observations of the players' reactions. For his part, the coach pronounced himself "satisfied" with the overall showing at the Telekom Cup, but stressed that "there are still things that need to be improved on."

Kroos taking up the gauntlet

One such, he believes, is the refinement of a style involving even "fewer touches" of the ball, a further indication that the man who took Barca's tiki-taka system to a new level of near-perfection is certainly no single-system obsessive. With the talent pool at his disposal, he has little need to be, either. Alongside the multi-deployable Thiago, Guardiola already has a potentially expanded brief for Franck Ribery in mind, while his Telekom Cup ensemble was notable as much for who was not involved as for who was.

All of which notwithstanding, Toni Kroos, for one, does not anticipate being crowded out when the likes of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Javi Martinez, Luis Gustavo and, of course, currently injured star signing Mario Götze are all jostling for a place as well. In his own words, "What matters to me is being top fit again, with no more problems. When I'm playing well, I know it looks good."

AC Milan come into this match off the back of one of their best attacking displays and their fans will hope that the floodgates are open now.AC Milan vs. Olympiakos - Europa League Preview Match Date: 04 October 2018 (local[…]

Table Games

Of all the systems you can actually bet on a soccer match this really is the simplest ; simply prognosticate whether the match will end in a home win , an away win or maybe a draw and place your money down accordingly . In case your prediction is correct , you win at the odds the bookmaker has quoted . As long as the final result is different from your own prediction , you lose .

Correct Score

Yet another relatively simple type of bet , with this one you need to simply predict the score at the end of normal time period ( not after extra time , or penalties , or over two legs ) . Remember that possible scores are generally quoted as home team first , away team second , so make double-sure you get all of them the proper way down before you decide to place any money down .

While Correct Score is an easy bet to make , given there are lots of probable outcomes of a single game , the odds of guessing accurately are likely to be quite minimal , turning this type of bet quite unpopular with serious tipsters .

Accumulators

Accumulators give you the option to bet on the results of several matches at once . The more sports event you bet on , the better your odds become . Then again , these are way more risky than single Correct Score bets considering that every bet in your Accumulator will have to come good , otherwise you lose . Double and treble accumulators are among the most recommended , though bookmakers will be happy for you to bet on as many events as you desire .

Halftime/Fulltime

A twist on Correct Score , Halftime/Fulltime ( or simply HT/FT as you may find it marketed as ) permits you to prognosticate what the score of a sports event will be first after 45 minutes and then after 90 . With this particular kind of bet , you surely will be given 9 alternatives , representing the 9 different available results . For example , you can actually back a team to be level at half time and win over 90 mins or even to be ahead at the half time and end up as losers .

First Goal Scorer

Remember , this is as simple as it sounds like . Straightforwardly forecast who will score the first goal in a game and back this player . As compared to other , more risky bets , this is usually a pretty risk-free choice , especially when you have a good knowledge of form going into a match . But bear in mind , bookmakers sometimes change their rules , so while some may count an own goal as the first one of the match , others might overlook these and only count 'normal' goals . Furthermore , while some bookies will give you your money back if the player you back is not on the soccer field at the time of the first goal , some will not .

First Goal Scorer may very well be combined with Correct Score or Full-time Result , with these combinations providing much better odds .

First Corner

This particular bet will let you prognosticate when the first corner of a soccer game will be , wither to the exact minute or within a specified period ( for instance , between 10 and 15 minutes ) . The odds available for this type of bet usually are quite eye-catching , despite the fact that it's difficult – or even impossible – to prognosticate this accurately , making First Corner more a fun flutter rather than a serious bet .

Number of Corners

As well as being able to predict when the first corner of a game will be , you may also be able to bet on how many corners there will be in one soccer match . Remember , you can get longer odds for betting on an exact number , but you will be able to spread your bets , for instance by placing money on there being between 5 and 10 corners in the standard 90 mins .

In Play Markets

A quite new and very popular phenomenon , In Play Markets permit you to place bets as matches progress , with odds constantly shifting . As an example , when a team goes behind early on , you may bet on them coming from behind to win , and even back a certain player to get the next goal . Some on-line bookmakers supply live streaming of sports events , providing punters the possiblity to place bets as the action unfolds , and , as long as you have funds in your account , you are free to change your mind as frequently as you desire .